Rationale - Utilizing the iPad or iPod Touch for Students with Visual Impairments in Regular Education Classrooms
As a teacher in a Primary Classroom you may be familiar with distributing a worksheet to the class and leading them in instruction. Everyone look at the top of the page and find the word name. Please write your full name at the top of the page. Great! Now everyone find the number 1 and put your finger on it. Then, you'll walk around the room to confirm everyone is in the write location before you read the question. Let's read the question together 2+2 = ___? All together now ... 4. Yes, now everyone write the number 4 in the blank. Now the process for the child that reads and writes using Braille is somewhat different. On their desk they also have a worksheet in Braille, a manual Brailler, and counters for math. They ignore the teachers directions to locate the word name at the top of the page as it doesn't apply to them. Instead they write their name at the top of their separate answer sheet already loaded in the Brailler. Why? Because you can not fill in the blank using a Braille worksheet as the Braille contraction blank (3,6 3,6 3,6 3,6) is embossed on the paper and you can't Braille over top of Braille (its just mush). Next they move their hands over to the Braille worksheet and tactually locate the number 1 as directed. Now the teacher glances down and sees their hands are on the Braille worksheet assuming they have located number 1, yet uncertain as they do not know Braille. Setting 1: The classroom teacher models and the students follow, touching and repeating aloud each number or symbol within the equation. Everyone writes their answer in the blank completing the equation. The student who writes using Braille types 1. #4 on their separate answer. Once the activity is complete they remove their paper and place in outbox for their TSBVI (Teacher of Students with Blindness and Visual Impairments) to transcribe into print for the classroom teacher to read and correct.
Hummmm.... What really happens? I've observed many Braille users following along, diligently using their Braille worksheet. I have also observed many situations that look more like this: Setting 2: The student writes their name at the top of the page, enters twice and writes 1. Then they move their hand over and place it anywhere on the Braille worksheet. The class reads the problem aloud and they listen. Their not following along with the class touching each number/symbol within the equation because your gonna read it aloud anyway. These are my little scribes, their oh so good at writing down exactly what others say or what their told.
Beginning Braille readers encounter as many new symbols as print readers. What if you can't read a word because the Braille book uses a contraction your not familiar with? You could ask your classroom teacher for help and together, with enough context cues, you'll be able to direct them to your location on their print copy. Even with classroom adaptations and the best efforts made by regular education teachers there are still obstacles using Braille materials.
How Does the iPad Connected to a Refreshable Braille Display Assist Classroom Teachers and Braille users overcome the obstacles of print?
The iPad provides a clear 10 inch screen for classroom teachers to view their students work. Students using a Refreshable Braille display can complete worksheets, follow along during reading lesson by moving their cursor, edit, email work samples, and independently navigate the iPad using their display. Why is completing a worksheet so important? Worksheets provide visual cues, the answers complete the visual lesson to be learned, and we use them as study guides. The iPad also provides reading support for Beginning Braille Readers.
If a student encounters a unfamiliar contraction they have the ability to independently obtain the answer by pressing a rotor key. Once a rotor key is pressed the word selected changes from contracted Braille (like short hand) to uncontracted Braille (all spelled out). If the student is still unable to figure out the word represented in Braille they could have VoiceOver read the word aloud. The iPad 2 provides 1 to 1 Correspondence Between Reading Mediums. *Reading Mediums: Print Reader, Large Print Readers, Braille Readers, orAuditory.
That means regular education teachers are never at a loss for a way to communicate with their Braille reading due to lack of Braille materials due to last minute changes. Regular education teachers can simply type anything they want their student to read in Braille using the onscreen keyboard and the notes App. Email your students copies of notes, worksheets, audio files, etc... as attachments with common extensions such as .doc, .txt,, .rtf, or .pdf. After enabling VoiceOver (free built in screen reader), the text written on the screen will also be displayed in Braille on the students Refreshable Braille display. To assist your student in locating the correct place within a worksheet, tap the screen to move the VoiceOver cursor (black box). The VoiceOver cursor will read new location, displaying it on the Refreshable Braille using dots (7,8)to identify he cursor location. The same is true for Braille users. A Refreshable Braille display is also a Keyboard. Students can input or type Braille Code and have it displayed on the iPad screen as transcribed print. Send a print copy of your work to your teacher via email or send it to the printer via Bluetooth. Thats the thing ...everything is always displayed using print and thus always accessible to the classroom teacher. Yet to the Braille user, everything is always accessible and displayed in Braille , as they use their Refreshable Braille displays to navigate the iPad.
What Will Regular Education Classroom Teacher's Gain?
Now you can review student samples or make corrections to sentence structure, capitalization, punctuation, spelling etc.... Why? Because the print copy the teacher receives via email, print, or views on the iPad screen is a direct translation of what the student wrote. If the first letter in the sentence isn't capitalized thats because the student neglected to use a capital sign. Now you know! Want to visually confirm your students location within the Braille document? Refreshable Braille displays utilize rotor keys which allow character by character navigation within a Braille line. These keys also provide a visual aka the "The Blinking Cursor." Classroom teachers can get Free Apps for Games, Concepts, Flashcards, and Reading. Many GrassHopperApps are compatible with VoiceOver and Refreshable Braille displays. This enables Students with Visual Impairments and Beginning Braille readers the ability to play and learn how to read together with their sighted peers.
What Else Can You Use the iPad For?
Color identification. Use the Color ID App (Free) with the iPad 2 camera and the App will tell you the color of the object scanned. This works well for matching, dressing, what goes together, and teaching color association for low vision.
Money. Use the EyeNote App (Free) with the iPad 2 camera to scan bills. The App will announce aloud the amount of the scanned bill, $1.00, and the bill orientation, face up. TalkingCalc (Free). This App is a talking calculator with counters. This App is compatible with VoiceOver and a Refreshable Braille display.
AudioBooks. There are tons of free electronic and audiobooks available. iBook and Stanza is compatible with VoiceOver and Refreshable Braille Displays.
Maps (Free) GPS navigation. Tells me where I am at, let me send my location to others to get help, provides directions to a given location. This also provides walking directions or directions to a destinations using public transportation.
Shopping, Labeling,and Identification. There are several bar code scanner Apps that are free and compatible with VoiceOver. Bar code scanners enable users to scan bar codes to identify food and grocery items. The App speak the product name, description, and price.
So What Do You Have to Lose? $529.00 tax included for a 16 GB WiFi iPad that every classroom teacher in the building will beg for.
As a teacher in a Primary Classroom you may be familiar with distributing a worksheet to the class and leading them in instruction. Everyone look at the top of the page and find the word name. Please write your full name at the top of the page. Great! Now everyone find the number 1 and put your finger on it. Then, you'll walk around the room to confirm everyone is in the write location before you read the question. Let's read the question together 2+2 = ___? All together now ... 4. Yes, now everyone write the number 4 in the blank.
Now the process for the child that reads and writes using Braille is somewhat different. On their desk they also have a worksheet in Braille, a manual Brailler, and counters for math. They ignore the teachers directions to locate the word name at the top of the page as it doesn't apply to them. Instead they write their name at the top of their separate answer sheet already loaded in the Brailler. Why? Because you can not fill in the blank using a Braille worksheet as the Braille contraction blank (3,6 3,6 3,6 3,6) is embossed on the paper and you can't Braille over top of Braille (its just mush). Next they move their hands over to the Braille worksheet and tactually locate the number 1 as directed. Now the teacher glances down and sees their hands are on the Braille worksheet assuming they have located number 1, yet uncertain as they do not know Braille.
Setting 1: The classroom teacher models and the students follow, touching and repeating aloud each number or symbol within the equation. Everyone writes their answer in the blank completing the equation. The student who writes using Braille types 1. #4 on their separate answer. Once the activity is complete they remove their paper and place in outbox for their TSBVI (Teacher of Students with Blindness and Visual Impairments) to transcribe into print for the classroom teacher to read and correct.
Hummmm.... What really happens? I've observed many Braille users following along, diligently using their Braille worksheet. I have also observed many situations that look more like this:
Setting 2: The student writes their name at the top of the page, enters twice and writes 1. Then they move their hand over and place it anywhere on the Braille worksheet. The class reads the problem aloud and they listen. Their not following along with the class touching each number/symbol within the equation because your gonna read it aloud anyway. These are my little scribes, their oh so good at writing down exactly what others say or what their told.
Beginning Braille readers encounter as many new symbols as print readers. What if you can't read a word because the Braille book uses a contraction your not familiar with? You could ask your classroom teacher for help and together, with enough context cues, you'll be able to direct them to your location on their print copy.
Even with classroom adaptations and the best efforts made by regular education teachers there are still obstacles using Braille materials.
How Does the iPad Connected to a Refreshable Braille Display Assist Classroom Teachers and Braille users overcome the obstacles of print?
The iPad provides a clear 10 inch screen for classroom teachers to view their students work.
Students using a Refreshable Braille display can complete worksheets, follow along during reading lesson by moving their cursor, edit, email work samples, and independently navigate the iPad using their display. Why is completing a worksheet so important? Worksheets provide visual cues, the answers complete the visual lesson to be learned, and we use them as study guides. The iPad also provides reading support for Beginning Braille Readers.
If a student encounters a unfamiliar contraction they have the ability to independently obtain the answer by pressing a rotor key. Once a rotor key is pressed the word selected changes from contracted Braille (like short hand) to uncontracted Braille (all spelled out). If the student is still unable to figure out the word represented in Braille they could have VoiceOver read the word aloud.
The iPad 2 provides 1 to 1 Correspondence Between Reading Mediums. *Reading Mediums: Print Reader, Large Print Readers, Braille Readers, orAuditory.
That means regular education teachers are never at a loss for a way to communicate with their Braille reading due to lack of Braille materials due to last minute changes. Regular education teachers can simply type anything they want their student to read in Braille using the onscreen keyboard and the notes App. Email your students copies of notes, worksheets, audio files, etc... as attachments with common extensions such as .doc, .txt,, .rtf, or .pdf. After enabling VoiceOver (free built in screen reader), the text written on the screen will also be displayed in Braille on the students Refreshable Braille display. To assist your student in locating the correct place within a worksheet, tap the screen to move the VoiceOver cursor (black box). The VoiceOver cursor will read new location, displaying it on the Refreshable Braille using dots (7,8)to identify he cursor location.
The same is true for Braille users. A Refreshable Braille display is also a Keyboard. Students can input or type Braille Code and have it displayed on the iPad screen as transcribed print. Send a print copy of your work to your teacher via email or send it to the printer via Bluetooth. Thats the thing ...everything is always displayed using print and thus always accessible to the classroom teacher. Yet to the Braille user, everything is always accessible and displayed in Braille , as they use their Refreshable Braille displays to navigate the iPad.
What Will Regular Education Classroom Teacher's Gain?
Now you can review student samples or make corrections to sentence structure, capitalization, punctuation, spelling etc....
Why? Because the print copy the teacher receives via email, print, or views on the iPad screen is a direct translation of what the student wrote. If the first letter in the sentence isn't capitalized thats because the student neglected to use a capital sign. Now you know!
Want to visually confirm your students location within the Braille document?
Refreshable Braille displays utilize rotor keys which allow character by character navigation within a Braille line. These keys also provide a visual aka the "The Blinking Cursor."
Classroom teachers can get Free Apps for Games, Concepts, Flashcards, and Reading.
Many GrassHopperApps are compatible with VoiceOver and Refreshable Braille displays. This enables Students with Visual Impairments and Beginning Braille readers the ability to play and learn how to read together with their sighted peers.
What Else Can You Use the iPad For?
Color identification. Use the Color ID App (Free) with the iPad 2 camera and the App will tell you the color of the object scanned. This works well for matching, dressing, what goes together, and teaching color association for low vision.
Money. Use the EyeNote App (Free) with the iPad 2 camera to scan bills. The App will announce aloud the amount of the scanned bill, $1.00, and the bill orientation, face up.
TalkingCalc (Free). This App is a talking calculator with counters. This App is compatible with VoiceOver and a Refreshable Braille display.
AudioBooks. There are tons of free electronic and audiobooks available. iBook and Stanza is compatible with VoiceOver and Refreshable Braille Displays.
Maps (Free) GPS navigation. Tells me where I am at, let me send my location to others to get help, provides directions to a given location. This also provides walking directions or directions to a destinations using public transportation.
Shopping, Labeling,and Identification. There are several bar code scanner Apps that are free and compatible with VoiceOver. Bar code scanners enable users to scan bar codes to identify food and grocery items. The App speak the product name, description, and price.
So What Do You Have to Lose?
$529.00 tax included for a 16 GB WiFi iPad that every classroom teacher in the building will beg for.
Using Braille on an iPad, iPhone, or iPod